House hunting

We have been looking at new houses. Well, technically, old houses, but new to us. We aren't seriously committed to buying, but we have been considering a small addition/remodel, and thought that in today's housing market, we should be really sure that we wouldn't rather move before we plunge into construction.

We have tried to mostly keep the kids not involved at this point, to avoid anxiety or confusion about a move. However, it is not always possible to schedule a showing without John, so he has seen a number of houses. Of course, it is confusing for him, at age 4. Each house we visit, he is excited about and wants to buy, but for completely preschooler-reasons. "Mom, let's buy this house. It's awesome! I like the pool table!"

Try as we might, we can't convince him that the furniture won't come with the house. Or that is not worth buying a house just because it has a hot tub on the deck - we could buy a hot tub for our current house for less than the cost of a move. (Although, I must confess, even I have a bit of trouble with that logic. I know we probably won't actually buy a hot tub, but if it came with a house anyway, that would be fun to have!) So, we try to settle for just convincing him that the things we see in a house walk-through do not belong to us and he can't take them with us when we go - like the toys. Had a few close calls on that one. And then, of course there is the other side of selling. After we tour a house, he might point to a neighboring house (with a cool playset in the yard) and ask to buy that one. Explaining to him that it is not for sale is difficult.

I suppose it must be very confusing to a young person, and yet, John often surprises me with his comprehension. He has obviously been stewing over this for a while. In the car the other day, he said, "Mom, I want to buy a new house. When can we?"

"Well, John, it isn't that simple. We might not ever do it. First we have to find a house that someone is selling, that we would want to buy."

There was a long silence, and I thought perhaps he was satisfied with my answer and had moved on. Instead, he replied, "Mom, buying a house is like waiting for a parking space to open up, isn't it? And sometimes you have to wait a long time." Score one for analogical thinking.